Isabella Carter
Background checks are a key element in preventing gun deaths in the United States. The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) stops thousands of convicted felons, domestic abusers, fugitives, and other prohibited people from buying guns each year. The FBI publishes category-by-category breakdowns of how many gun sales it has denied under each of the 12 criteria. Some of the reasons for failing a background check include felony convictions, misdemeanour domestic violence, mental health adjudications, and active restraining orders.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Criminal record | Misdemeanor domestic violence, felony stalking, drug crimes, fugitive, etc. |
| Mental health history | Committed to a mental health facility, ruled mentally unfit, deemed mentally incapacitated |
| Civil orders | Domestic violence restraining orders |
| Age | Under 18 for shotguns, rifles, or ammunition; under 21 for handguns |
| Lying on the Firearms Transaction Record (Form 4473) | Providing false information about criminal history |
| Unpaid taxes | Unpaid taxes are not a reason for denial, according to one source |
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What You'll Learn
Criminal history
The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was created by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 1998 to prevent gun crime. The system contains information about individuals' criminal and mental health histories, as well as any civil orders entered against them that might affect their eligibility to purchase or possess a firearm. Since its launch, NICS has prevented more than 1.7 million attempted gun transfers by people with criminal records.
NICS denial laws, also known as "active alerts," require state law enforcement or firearm dealers to notify local law enforcement when a person prohibited by law from purchasing firearms tries to buy a gun and fails the background check. This enables law enforcement to stop them before they obtain guns illegally.
A criminal history will result in a failed background check and a ban on purchasing or possessing a firearm. This includes felony convictions, violent crimes, and misdemeanor domestic violence offenses. The FBI conducts further reviews if the background check does not specify the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim in cases of misdemeanor domestic violence offenses.
The NICS Indices hold more records on illegal/unlawful aliens than any other type of prohibited purchaser, with over seven million records. However, few unlawful immigrants attempt to buy guns from licensed dealers. The FBI allows sales to foreigners legally in the country as long as they are permanent residents, have entered the country without a visa and meet residency requirements, or have a visa and a hunting or sporting license.
A study commissioned by the U.S. Department of Justice found that 30% of people who failed criminal background checks while attempting to purchase firearms over a year were rearrested within five years. Background check laws help prevent guns from being diverted to the illegal market, and states without these laws export crime guns across state lines at a 30% higher rate.
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Mental health history
Federal law prohibits individuals with specific mental health histories from possessing firearms, and this information should be included in the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). However, there is no federal mandate requiring states to provide this information to federal or state agencies conducting background checks. As a result, many states voluntarily fail to report mental health records to the NICS, which can lead to individuals with serious mental health concerns obtaining firearms. This issue highlights the challenge of ensuring comprehensive and accurate mental health reporting in background checks.
Some states have taken proactive steps to address this concern. For instance, Connecticut began reporting individuals prohibited from possessing firearms due to mental health history to the background check system in 2007, resulting in a 50% decrease in violent crimes committed by this demographic. Similarly, in 2013, Florida enacted a law mandating the reporting of voluntarily committed individuals who pose a danger to themselves or others, as assessed by a judge, magistrate, or examining physician.
It is worth noting that mental health records submitted to the NICS do not contain clinical information but rather identify individuals through names, birth dates, and similar data. This process protects privacy while still allowing for effective firearm transfer prevention. Since 1994, the federal background check system has prevented nearly five million gun sales to individuals prohibited from owning firearms due to various factors, including mental health concerns.
While mental health history is a critical factor in firearms background checks, it is just one aspect of a comprehensive evaluation. Background checks also consider criminal history, restraining orders, and other factors that may indicate an individual's instability or potential risk to public safety. The decision to deny an individual the ability to purchase a firearm based on their mental health history is not taken lightly and is made with careful consideration of multiple factors.
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Fugitive status
The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is a background check system in the United States that was created by the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993. It is administered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and was launched in 1998. The system screens people when they attempt to buy firearms at licensed dealers and is the government’s first line of defense against gun crime.
The definition of a fugitive for the purposes of background checks has narrowed in recent years. Previously, the FBI considered anyone subject to an arrest warrant a fugitive for gun sales. Now, a person can have an arrest warrant without realizing it, which can cause a delay in the background check process.
The NICS database was developed by the FBI in collaboration with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), as well as state and local law enforcement agencies. It is a centralized catalog of records comprising three separate national databases: the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the Interstate Identification Index (III), and the NICS Index.
The overwhelming majority of gun background checks take just minutes to clear the would-be buyer. Only 2% result in a rejection because of a disqualifying record in the shopper’s personal history. Since 1998, NICS has put a stop to more than 1.7 million attempted gun transfers by people with records.
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Domestic violence offences
The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is the FBI's firearm background check system. It is designed to stop convicted felons, domestic abusers, and other prohibited people from buying firearms. Under federal law, there are 10 categories of people who are prohibited from receiving or possessing a gun, including people convicted of domestic violence and those subject to a domestic violence-related protection order.
The background check is intended to ensure that the buyer isn't in one of the prohibited categories. Federally licensed firearm dealers run these background checks, which are supposed to help keep guns out of the hands of people with domestic violence records and others who are disqualified by law from possessing firearms.
The definition of what constitutes a domestic violence crime varies by state. Some states consider "disturbing the peace" or "assault" as domestic violence, while others have specific "domestic violence" crimes that meet the federal criteria to prohibit gun possession.
The federal government's grounds for prohibiting gun ownership by people with domestic violence records were established by the 1996 passage of an amendment sponsored by Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey. This amendment added domestic violence as a prohibiting category to the Gun Control Act of 1968.
The background check system aims to prevent gun sales to prohibited individuals, but it also presents an opportunity to intervene and prevent future homicides of women by an intimate partner. In light of the significant risk of future violence by domestic abusers with firearms, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies should investigate each of these cases proactively.
When a prohibited abuser attempts to buy a gun and fails a background check, the FBI refers the case to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Denial Enforcement and NICS Intelligence (DENI) Branch for review. However, very few of these cases receive further investigation by law enforcement.
To address this issue, several states have implemented laws requiring law enforcement to be notified when a person fails a NICS check. For example, Washington State has created a grant program to provide funds to local law enforcement agencies to conduct criminal investigations into denied background checks. These notifications enable police to stop people from obtaining guns illegally through unlicensed sales or other means.
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Drug crimes
The NICS background check process involves verifying an individual's criminal history and drug use through Form 4473, which includes questions related to drug use and criminal activity. Lying on this form is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Drug crimes, including convictions for drug possession or drug-related offenses, can render an individual ineligible to purchase or possess a firearm. This is consistent across various states, including California, which takes a proactive approach by prohibiting individuals convicted of misdemeanor assault, indicating a potential escalation to more severe crimes.
Additionally, federal law establishes that individuals with a history of drug abuse or addiction may be barred from firearm ownership. This includes people who have been convicted of drug-related crimes or determined by a court to be addicted to illegal controlled substances. Mental health information, including drug and alcohol abuse, is reported to federal and state databases, and individuals deemed unfit due to substance abuse issues may be prohibited from purchasing firearms.
The background check system also identifies unlawful drug users, and more than 148,000 such individuals have been blocked from acquiring firearms. This aspect of the background check is crucial in ensuring that firearms do not end up with individuals who might pose a danger to themselves or others due to substance abuse issues.
Furthermore, service members convicted of drug-related offenses in court-martials may also be prohibited from possessing firearms. Their records are entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), and base officers are responsible for clearly indicating in the paperwork database when an offender is barred from gun ownership. This measure helps ensure that individuals with a history of drug-related issues in the military do not have access to firearms.
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Frequently asked questions
The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) was created by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 1993. It is a centralized catalog of records comprising three separate national databases. The system screens people when they attempt to buy firearms at licensed dealers and is the government’s first line of defense against gun crime.
Any felony conviction, misdemeanor domestic violence, mental health adjudications, and active warrants for arrest will result in a failed background check. Additionally, individuals unlawfully present in the country and those addicted to controlled substances will also fail the background check.
If someone fails a NICS background check, the local law enforcement in the state where the person attempted to purchase the firearm is notified. This enables police to stop people from obtaining guns illegally. In some cases, individuals may be prosecuted for lying on government forms during the background check process.
